The Halal festival at Katara – the Cultural Village this year will feature new activities especially for children, it was announced.

In a press statement, Katara said the festival aims to raise awareness on this traditional profession of ancestors among the youth.

Salman al-Nuaimy, head of the Halal festival, said one of the most significant activities is the “Little Shepherd” competition for children aged 10-14 years old. It involves a handful of activities to test their knowledge in livestock breeding.

He noted that the competition is one of several activities which target children and adults to expose them to livestock breeding.

“Through ‘Little Shepherd, children will learn different skills such as how to milk a sheep and how to differentiate between the best types of wool,” al-Nuaimy said. “It also helps them to find out how a shepherd takes care of his herds of livestock and how to feed and breed them properly.”

The previous Halal festival witnessed more than 2,000 students from different schools in Qatar participating.

The registration for the ‘Little Shepherd’ competition will be held during the festival, which will kick off on Saturday (February 2).